I FELL
by Nicholette Kingston
Summary: Sixteen year old Charlotte "Charlie" Anderson is ready for the summer of her pre-junior year dreams, but then everything comes crashing down when she's shipped off to Arizona. Boys, boats, and wakeboarding slips...she's in a whole other world.
1. Worst Summer of My Life

1

WORST SUMMER OF MY LIFE

My mom was watching us, well, me. She knew my little sister wouldn't argue, she was to angelic and pure, I on the other hand, well; I wasn't going until I put up a fight.

"Mom, are you really going to singlehandedly destroy the summer of my dreams?" I noticed her fingers grip the wheel tighter than before.

"Charlotte," I could almost see her hair graying before me, "this shouldn't be such a big deal. You're spending the summer with your aunt in Arizona. Otherwise, what? You'd be spending your summer sleeping around the house."

I narrowed my eyes and through the rearview mirror Mom's browns met my blues. _I cannot believe she is doing this to me!_

"This is going to be the worst summer of my life." I grumbled, leaning back further into the back seat.

"Calm down Charlie." My sister, Liz, gave me a small smile, "I bet it's going to be lots of fun!"

I bit my lip, but to no avail, I caved. If there was a single person in the world who I loved to the moon, it was my twelve year old sister Liz. Were it not for the four year age difference and the glasses she wore, we could have been twins. Both obviously small for their age, me being only 5'4" and she being 5 flat, both with mousy blonde hair, oval shaped faces, and big blues for eyes. But like any "twins" we had our obvious differences. Liz was the quiet, soft spoken one, content curled up on the sofa with a Meyer or Rowling book in hand. I, on the other hand, was loud, rambunctious, and people starved. And I liked to argue…a lot. Mom blames it on teenage angst and being fatherless, I personally believe I'm a debate team star and training for my moment in court.

"Well," Mom's face was tight with concentration, something I normally would have laughed at, "We should be here soon…I think."

I looked out through the window, the last moderately large town had passed fifteen miles ago and now we were traveling through a dusty and lifeless outback.

"Where's the river Aunt Jenna talked about?" My sister questioned anxiously.

"It's a bit farther out, but I'm sure you'll love it." Mom smiled down at Liz, "She lives right on the river."

I rolled my eyes.

"Technically, she doesn't Mom." I smirked, "Jenna lives in Colorado, but has a vacation home ON the Colorado river." I laughed half heartedly, "Talk about ironic."

"Why aren't we going to the real Colorado then?" Liz asked cautiously.

Mom sighed. To be honest, I don't think Liz realized half of the things going on around her in the "real" world. She still thought the world could be solved through a bit of teamwork and compassion, which was another reason I loved her so much.

"Money problems honey." Mom's eyes never left the road, "I'm a single working mom and it's been hard for me, for us." She opened her window slightly, and a wave of hot air hit me directly in the face, but she didn't notice. "Aunt Jenna, God bless, is doing well, and she agreed to fly down and meet you girls here." Her eyes finally left the road, and sheepishly she added, "It'll be a great deal cheaper."

I didn't care less, whether it be Colorado or the Colorado River; I was still away from my friends and "the summer of my life." This was supposed to be the summer where my ex and I got back together, where I humiliated Kelsey Sherman, and I took the junior trip to the Oregon caves with all my closest friends. But no, instead my summer would consist of an overly chlorinated pool, some muggy river water, and sixty-seven days in over hundred degree weather.

"Next turn Mom." Liz's voice interrupted my train of thought and I peered past the front seats, this had to be the first paved road since twenty miles back. A small brightly colored sign read, Sunset View Resort and Vacation Getaway.

Surprisingly, I hadn't noticed the resort. It would have been hard to do. Unlike its surroundings, there were tall, water starved trees and bright green grass circled almost the entire resort. Plus there were small houses littering the flat grounds and the hills above them. It was a rich person's idea of a getaway, with all the luxuries of home. I could practically smell the dollar bills burning away in the sun. The paved driveway led to a security booth, which after at least five minutes of questioning finally let us in. Apparently, being dropped off to visit during the summer was uncalled for here. _That's probably because normally they're flown in_. I thought to myself dryly. The paved road continued, branching off into smaller streets leading to the houses, but the main road continuing a bit farther, decorated with limp palm trees and night lights, and finally leading to the major parking lot and the main office.

I stepped out of our Ford, noticing that the lot was almost completely empty, and the only vehicles other than our own included a sleek Z4, some lonely boat trailers and three golf carts. That small flicker of hope I had had quickly drained away.

"Don't worry dear, the night life here is much better than the day life." A familiar voice spoke warmly.

I turned around abruptly and smiled at the person who stood in front of me. Thirty some years old, single and the most gorgeous non-model out there, even my current attitude couldn't help me from leaping into Aunt Jenna's open arms and returning her hug.

"I missed you Charlie girl."

"I missed you too, Aunt Jenna."


	2. It's a Dry Heat

2

IT'S A DRY HEAT

"It's so hot here." Liz had stepped out of the car. I had warned her not the wear jeans, but she hadn't listened.

She and Jenna hugged which left her and mom to greet each other. This was going to be good; in fact, I was about ready to hand out popcorn.

"Well, Jenna, it's been awhile." Mom smiled shrewdly.

"Six years Margie, I thought you had forgotten about me." Jenna laughed, then sobered, "Funny how you only contacted me until you needed to free your hands."

Mom stiffened, shooting warning glances at me. I knew what that meant…the sisters were going to fight and I was to take Liz somewhere else. I grabbed Liz's arm and smiled lightly.

"Let's go see what's farther down, alright?"

Liz complied, leaving her book on the car seat and following quietly, every so often stopping to fix her now rolled up jeans. I observed the surroundings with semi-interest. To the left of the parking lot was a flat beige building, flashing the words "We're Open" every so often. Even through the walls I could hear the clatter of utensils and the light mumbling of a television set. I turned and altered my course, heading for the main building instead. It was painted the same neutral beige but included rounded towers and walls decorated in glass covered bulletin boards. Metal benches led the way to two doors, a brown gate and a glass French door. I leaned over the wall of the gate, wondering what could be on the other side.

"A pool." Liz noted with interest, "And it's a nice one too."

It sure was. It was one of those pools that rounded corners and twisted its way about a large area of space. There were a few people lounging about the deck, an old couple, tired looking parents chasing after two small children, and a trio of college age girls sitting inside a glowing Jacuzzi farther back. How anyone could stand a Jacuzzi in this heat? I had no idea whatsoever.

I reached for the handle and pulled, nothing happened.

"You need a key, see?" Liz pointed to a gray light sensor pad to the gate's right. "It's one of those little fobs, or whatever they call them."

I turned to Liz, my eyes questioning her dejected spirit. On the way here, she was beaming, and now she barely seemed happy enough to walk. I sat on the closest bench and patted the spot next to me; Liz followed and settled next to me.

"Okay, Liz, tell me what the hell is wrong?" I lifted her chin and looked her in the eye, "You never act this depressed."

Liz squirmed and averted my gaze. I sighed and stood back up, walking to the French doors and opening one of them.

"I'm guessing this is the store," a blast of cold air flew out the door, "I'm going to get us some ice crème, while you think about an answer for that question I asked, alright?"

I didn't wait for her response; instead I walked into the store. There was a check in desk, tall and proud and covered in various brochures, two cash registers and four aisles. I skimmed through them and made my way to the back of the store, a group of four or five others about my age were laughing and filling ice crème cones. I waited for the machine to open and flipped through a magazine absently, but actually listening in on their conversation.

"No way Logan! Water skiing beats wakeboarding any day!"

"I don't know about that Mitchie, skiing seems pretty lame."

There were five of them, I noticed now. Two girls, Mitchie, a tall brunette, with a haughty expression on her pale face, and a tanned tow head that seemed to not have a mind of her own. The three others were guys, cute ones in fact. One had dark skin and a flashing smile, the other was smaller and blonde, a baseball cap turned backwards on his head, and the last one was the "Logan." Tan and shirtless, disheveled brown hair falling into his eyes and a wild grin on his face.

The guys had their backs to me, but the two girls had obviously noticed me and were now whispering behind the palms of their hands, every so often looking up at me and giggling. I could feel my anger boiling up inside me, but decided to play my cool. I watched silently as the five left before reaching for two ice crème cones and filling them with a chocolate/vanilla mix. I paid for the cold desert and headed back out, ready to question Liz once more.

We finished our ice crème and I turned back around and faced Liz, my expression saying it all. Liz sighed.

"It's Mom and Jenna." Liz finally whispered, peering at me through her rectangular glasses, "They're fighting again, aren't they?"

I froze, wondering, not for the first time, how much Liz really knew. I personally knew that Mom tried to hide the aggressive word battles she and her sister had had before losing contact, and lately, there had been hushed arguments through the phone late in the evenings.

"They have their differences Liz." I rubbed her back gently, "They were never as close as us."

That wasn't true, in fact, they had been closer…until the incident, but Liz didn't have to know that. I just didn't want her to worry.

"I know, but it must be awful, not loving your sister." Her forehead creased and she brought her knees up to her chest.

"I know babe." I ushered her into a light hug and brushed her hair out of her face, "But don't worry, I'll never stop loving you."

Liz smiled.

"Same here Charlie." Then she exaggerated a pout, "But you know what? It _is_ really hot here, how am I going to survive in this heat?"

There we go, sad moment over and Liz is back. I grinned at her and pointed to my shorts, and my tank top.

"This is how you're going to survive." I laughed, "But it's alright, it's a dry heat."

We made our way back to the car where Jenna sat behind the wheel of a white golf cart and Mom was leaning against the Ford. Both of them seemed cold towards each other but Mom's hug was full of warmth.

"I'm going to miss you girls. Be careful, promise me that, alright?" Mom turned back towards me and pushed a stray hair out of my eyes before whispering, "Promise me you'll take good care of Liz."

I nodded and stepped back. Liz and I watched as Mom drove our dusty Ford back through security, before stepping into the golf cart.

"You girls ready for some fun?" Jenna smiled broadly, white teeth gleaming. "This place is amazing. Wait until you see the river, it'll be so great, just you wait!"

"I'm sure it will be." I mumbled, wondering if I'd see the boys from the store anytime soon. I sure hope I would.


	3. Shouldn't She, Donna?

The houses were separated by "divisions." Division A was closest to the security gate and, apparently, the horse farm. Division B was right in the middle, and included no view whatsoever, while Division C was nearest the outback for dirt back riding, and the miniature harbor. Division D was closest to the store and located on the flattest bit of land, nearest the entrance to the river. From the street Jenna lived on, there was a lovely view of the river, which was a two minute walk away.

When Jenna had emailed us about staying in a house, she never mentioned what kind. Not that we cared really. It was painted a mellow yellow and detailed in white, and only a bit wider than a large fifth wheel trailer. White steps led to a sliding door which led to a cozy living room/dining room area. A small kitchenette was left of the dining area, where the door to the bathroom and largest bedroom could also be found, and to the right of the living room, a smaller room with two bunks, a couch bed, and a large wardrobe.

Liz was glowing when she walked into our room; she had always wanted to sleep in a top bunk. I was pleased too, and in fact slightly surprised, this vacation home was as large as our house back home in Oregon, if not better, what with the view and pool.

"Well, I'll leave you to unpack your things," Jenna's gaze wandered to Liz, "And possibly change clothes."

Liz smiled guiltily, and I grinned as I tossed her a pair of shorts.

"So, in about an hour then, I'd like you to come with me and meet some friends of mine. You'll like them I'm sure."

I nodded vaguely and began folding and hanging clothes into the wardrobe, not really paying attention to anything going on around me. No matter how much I knew Mitchie and her friend were bad news, I couldn't help but hope those were the "friends" Jenna was going to introduce us too. If they were, and they liked me, then my future was set here. That I knew for sure.

"Donavan Biel." He grabbed my hand and shook energetically. "Pleasure to meet you, Jenna's been telling me an' the wife all 'bout you two girls. Hasn't she Donna?"

Donna nodded, her thin brown hair whipping wildly into her smiling face. Donavan and Donna, strange how they would seem to be nearly identical and were more different than night and day, Donavan was a round, large man, balding and sunburned from the sun, while Donna was a tall, thin lady, white from her SPF 50 sunscreen.

"You should meet our son and daughter, shouldn't she Donna?"

Donna nodded again. It dawned to me that Donavan must do most of the talking for her. It also dawned to me that I might finally meet someone to talk to. Remember? People starved, that's a descriptor used to portray me almost regularly.

"Oi! Delilah! Daniel! Get out here, will you?"

I watched in anticipation, but my hope soon dimmed. Stepping out of the colorful 76D house was a lanky brunette, her clothes all a bit baggy on her and her nose splotched in a glob of sunscreen. She had to be my age, even if she looked two or three years younger. Following her was Daniel, probably ten years old, a joking gleam in his eyes and a face full of freckles.

"Hey, I'm Delilah." She waved shyly, hiding her eyes in her hair.

"And I'm Daniel," he grinned slyly and grabbed first my hand, then Liz's, kissing each one in turn, "Pleased to meet you."

I chuckled, wishing that Daniel had been my age instead of Delilah, you could tell that he was a jokester and probably great to be around, even if he wasn't the greatest looking in the world.

"I'm sure." I added, raising an eyebrow and smiling, "I'm Charlotte, Charlie, and this is Liz."

Daniel and Liz hit it off, even with Liz's quiet demeanor. On the other hand, I wasn't ready to become chummy with Delilah, even as hard as she tried to strike up a conversation I quickly bowled over it and pretended to text someone of utmost importance. I could tell Delilah was getting the clue, and I knew she was hurt.

We ate dinner at their place, outside on their "deck." Every so often a golf cart would pass, and a group of screaming teens laughing and playing loud music could be heard. I longed for the chance to hop onto a golf cart and drive off, Mitchie and Logan telling me to "turn up the music," and laughing at something I had said.

"Are you okay?" Delilah's voice cut into my fantasy like a knife. "You looked lost."

That's another thing I had forgotten about my fantasy, Delilah would be nowhere near it. I hated to sound so mean, but we had absolutely nothing in common, and I doubted Logan and his two friends would even look at her. As if listening to my calls, Mitchie and the other four drove by, "Love the Way You Lie" spewing from the speakers of their golf cart. Delilah noticed my sudden interest.

"Don't." she added quietly.

"Don't what?" I snapped, glad that her parents and Jenna were sitting at the table while we sat on the backseat of their Rhino farther down the driveway.

"Don't look at them like they're amazing and stuff." She shrugged. "Mitchie and Georgia are the biggest bitches here, and Logan," she paused, "well; Logan's the biggest player at Sunset View. You know the first row?"

I nodded, fighting against what she had just told me. After all, I could tell Mitchie and that tow head, Georgia, were obviously not the nicest people around, but Logan didn't seem so bad, neither did his two friends.

"Yeah, well. The first row is for weekend and weekly, at the most, monthly. Logan's hit each place, and has been with each girl in the front row." Delilah frowned, "He doesn't give much of the other girls a second look, although Mitchie sure does try hard."

I watched as the yellow lights of Logan's golf cart faded into the darkness and wished it weren't so. Even as I lay in my bed that night, listening to Liz's steady breathing, I clenched my hands into tight fists. Delilah was wrong, she had to be. It was probably just because Delilah had never had a chance with them, and now she's downing on my parade too. Well I'll show her, and then we'll see who's going to be down.


	4. This Is the FireAxel 200

"Come on girls! Get up off your sorry behinds! It's a brand new day, get into your swimsuits; we're heading out on the water baby!"

The door to our room stayed open and golden light filtered through my closed eyes. You can categorize people into two categories. Early Birds, those that wake up at the crack of dawn and like it, and Night Owls, the ones that sleep away half the day and stay up through the entire night. Aunt Jenna's in the first category, while my sister and I were definitely the second.

I grumpily pulled on a red bikini and slipped into some old flip flops. Using one hand to brush through my hair, and the other to pull the covers off of Liz I yelled loudly, watching with amusement as Liz sat up hurriedly, hair disarrayed and rubbing her eyes.

I left Liz to change and headed to the kitchen, grabbing an empty bowl and a box of my favorite sugary cereal, Cocoa Puffs, and a carton of milk. I ate slowly, enjoying the chocolate on my tongue, wondering what Aunt Jenna had in mind.

Liz had chosen to wear a blue two piece suit, while Aunt Jenna was wearing a black one piece, cut low in the back and purposefully torn at the hips up to her ribcage. Her hair was tied messily in a ponytail. Even now, the way she was dressed, she looked ready for the runway.

"Well are you girls ready?" Jenna sounded so excited, it was contagious.

She led us to the beach, the one we had a view of, and walked down towards the farthest area of the beach. A gleaming red boat, wakeboard tower and all was tied down to a palm tree.

"This is the FireAxel 200." Jenna beamed, "I bought it just for your trip, this is going to be so thrilling!"

"Aunt Jenna, you didn't have to buy a boat just for us!" I protested.

"Oh, but Charlie," Jenna pouted, "I wanted too! Back when I was a kid Dad would take us boating all the time, I'd actually wanted to buy a boat for awhile." She smiled teasingly, "Besides, who said this boat was just for you?"

I helped Liz into the boat and settled into one of the back seats. The boat was just as nice on the inside as on the outside, with cream colored seats and large music towers. I could barely believe it, but it was all actually happening. Jenna had actually gotten a boat, and a really nice one at that. Curious, I turned to watch Jenna, she had pushed the boat off the shore and had jumped lithely onto the front of the boat, rushing to the wheel and turning the key quickly. The motor roared to life and music played from the speakers. My eyes widened and I yelled out to Jenna.

"Aunt Jenna?" she glanced at me, "Do you know what you're doing?"

She tossed her head back, her dark hair blowing wildly, and laughed. I immediately tensed and wished Liz had chosen to sit next to me instead of at the front.

"Of course I don't Charlie! That's what makes it so much fun!"

With that remark the boat gunned and we drifted lazily out of the five mile per hour zone. As soon as we passed the bright cones Jenna gripped the wheel and off we went.

It was extremely beautiful, I couldn't deny it. The sky was bright blue and the water a dark, but welcoming, indigo. Large red mountains loomed over the dry grasses growing in and off the banks of the river. Never had I felt so at ease. Warm air played with my hair, the heat of the sun warming my back, droplets of river water spraying my face, and long tendrils of river grass whipping the sides of the boat every so often.

"This is beautiful!" I screamed so Liz could hear.

"What?" Liz replied, and I rolled my eyes.

Liz was practically leaning out of the boat, her pink life jacket squeezing her cheeks and her hair blowing wildly. She looked happier than she had in a long time, and when Liz was happy, I was happy too. For the first time since arriving here I was glad we had come, if not just to get Liz to smile the way she was smiling. Watching Liz cautiously I leaned back against the chair, every so often averting my gaze to watch another boat pass by. Each time one did, we jumped up over their waves and Liz squealed. There were a few times where I did as well, and I have to admit that it was worth the scream.

We slowed when we reached the third sand bank, the one past Martinez Lake and managed to find a spot. I leapt out of the boat and helped Jenna unload our chairs and cooler while Liz smeared sunscreen onto her back and face. When we had docked and settled into our little corner of the island, Liz splashed into the water and I ran in after her, forgetting my "mature" teenage attitude in the heat of the moment.

"You sure you don't want to play horseshoes, Liz?"

Liz shook her head, and put a finger to her lips, as if signaling silence. Not that she would get much. There were at least twenty other boats docked on the sand bank, and ten of them were blaring music of their own. Combine that and the general hum of busybodies and silence would never reach your ears. But Liz was in her element, a butterfly net in one hand and splashing through the gentle waves, attempting to catch a baby fish.

"What about you, Jenna?"

She waved her arm lazily and returned to tanning. I shrugged and turned back around. It _looks like it's going to be a lonely game of horseshoes._ I mused and pulled my sunglasses down to cover my eyes before throwing the horseshoe. It landed several feet away from the spike and right between a pair of feet. I let my eyes slide up. Tan and shirtless, disheveled brown hair falling into his eyes and a wild grin on his face; it was that Logan guy from the store!

"First time at horseshoes?" He picked up the horseshoe and effortlessly threw it directly onto the spike.

"Yeah, and it looks like I'm pretty lousy at it." I smiled nervously, pinching myself mentally for using the word lousy.

"Nah," he smiled and took a few steps closer, "You're not lousy, you're better than some girls I know. They throw their shoes into the water or at someone's head instead."

I grinned, knowing I looked stupid but couldn't help myself. Inside I was jumping off the walls, he was talking to me! But he had mentioned other girls…could they have been Mitchie and Georgia?

"So, you from downtown or one of the resorts?" He finally added, reaching for the other set of horseshoes.

"Resort. Sun View to be exact." I threw a horseshoe and missed, but barely.

Logan looked faintly surprised and threw another horseshoe, landing it exactly.

"Really?" I could feel Logan's eyes on me, "How long you been there? I don't remember ever seeing you around."

"Well, technically, this is my first day here; I got there late yesterday afternoon. I live with Jenna Anderson." I nodded towards my now sleeping Aunt.

"48D then. You're only five houses down from mine." He smiled and landed his last shoe, all of his had stacked up on top of each other while mine lay dejectedly around his.

"That's cool." I controlled my excitement, but scrunched my eyebrows hesitantly, "Wait, how do you know where Jenna lives?"

He laughed and walked into the water, beckoning with his head for me to follow. Now uncertain I wavered, but followed anyway. We were in at about waist level when I plucked up the courage to ask again.

"How'd you know?" I swam against the current towards him, not caring if my hair got wet in the process.

"How'd I know what?" He glanced at me shrewdly.

"Where Jenna lives!" I snapped.

"Whoa there." He grinned, "That's easy, I'm the co-owners son. It's kinda my job to know everyone at Sunset View. That's why I freaked when you said you're living there. Someone as pretty as you would be hard to miss."

I felt a blush creep up into my cheeks and I swallowed a clever remark as to how he had missed me…twice, in fact. Just as I opened my mouth to respond a roaring engine cut me off. Coming from our left was a large white boat, accented in blue, rock blared from the speakers and a rope was attached to the back. The rope was being held on the other end by a tall brunette skimming the water's surface with a flat board. She held the handle of the rope with one hand and waved with the other, steadily climbing waves and leaping over them at the last minute, after an especially impressive leap and spin Logan cupped his mouth with his hands and hollered.

"Yeah! Ride those waves Mitchie!" he laughed as Mitchie shot him a thumbs up and somersaulted into the air, dropping the rope and hitting the water, board first, with a splash.

Unfortunately her life jacket saved her, and she rose to the surface seconds later as her boat spun back around to pick her up again. She kicked the board off her feet and scrambled back into the boat, switching places with a tow head that had to be Georgia. We watched Georgia for awhile, Logan making comments every so often. She was good, but not nearly as good as Mitchie had been. The boat zoomed away and life once again resumed on the island.

"Well that was cool." I noted dully.

"Heck yeah it was!" Logan grinned, "I bet you anything she's getting ready for the Western Water Sports Competition in August. She's finally sixteen, so she's old enough to enter." He met my eyes for a moment, then tore away, "She's going to win the women division for sure. My dad judged the competition last year so I got a free pass, but this year," He splashed me playfully, "This year I'm entering, so he can't be a judge, but it doesn't really matter. I'm going to smoke those "pros" out there."

He smiled playfully, not needing to add an "I'm joking" because, really? I believed him. Logan Hart could do anything he set his heart out to do; it was just something that radiated off of him. I however couldn't help but be embarrassed.

"Um, this is going to sound stupid," he turned back to me, inquisitive, "But what exactly was Mitchie doing?"

He stared at me, dumbfounded, for a second before he walked back into the shallower area. I followed, wondering if he had a habit of making girls follow him to answer their questions, but this time I didn't have to ask him again. He leapt up onto a boat anchored a few feet away. It wasn't as big as Mitchie's had been, nor as eye-catching as ours, but it was definitely built for speed. It was low in the water and streaked in orange flames, sound towers gleaming in the sun.

He jumped back into the water, his brown hair had air dried quickly and now whistled with the wind. He reached into the boat and pulled out a board similar to Mitchie's but slightly larger.

"This," he pointed for unneeded emphasis, "this is a wakeboard. You hold onto a rope and let the boat pull you through the waves." He smirked at me, bemused, "You've never been wakeboarding?"

"Nope," I shook my head slowly, "I'm new to this entire thing. Remember?"

Logan whistled and used his hand to run through his hair. I couldn't help but wonder what his hair would feel like between my fingers.

"Wow, that's incredible." He slid the board back into the boat, "Well I guess someone's going to have to join my family for a wakeboarding trip."

"That sounds great!" I mustered as much fake enthusiasm as I could, but truth be told? I did not want to embarrass myself in front of Logan, especially since we had just watched Mitchie the Amazing ride the waters like a queen. What if he expected me to be a natural? What if I ended up falling every time until he, and his family, gave up on me? No way could I go with them…at least not yet.

"That sounds wonderful." I added, practically choking on my words.

"Awesome." He smiled and I felt myself melt.

_Play it cool Charlie girl, play it cool._

"Charlie! We're leaving babe!" Jenna yelled over the island, pointing to the boat in case I hadn't heard. But I had, the entire river probably had.

"Listen, I had a great time, maybe we could…" he began, before I interrupted him.

"Yeah hanging out would be great." I smiled, hoping my salad from before wasn't stuck in my teeth, either way, it was too late now, I had smiled so many times my cheeks were hurting.

"Cool, just remember 43D, and here." He searched his boat cup holder for a pen and scrawled a number down on my hand, "Sorry, didn't bring any paper out on the water."

I quickly jotted my number onto his arm and ran down the sand bank, jumping into the already moving FireAxel 200 and turned around once more. Logan was running through the water right towards us, in one hand the pen and the other waving frantically.

"Wait! What's your name?" he yelled.

"Charlie!" I replied, a smile creeping onto my lips.

"I'm Logan!" He said something else, but we were too far away to hear.

I fumbled my way to the back of the boat and met Aunt Jenna's gaze.

"He's your sweetheart, I take it." She chuckled.

"Yeah right, Aunt Jenna, as if."

But inside, I was screaming YES, YES, YES! We drove all the way home with my heart beating in time with the boat, and my mind working overdrive.


End file.
